Clifford Brown was in two major car crashes in his short life. The first was when he was 19. The driver swerved to miss a deer. Two died and two were seriously injured. Brown was of the latter. His hip and shoulder were permanently impaired but that didn't stop him from becoming a jazz legend. Six years later the driver fell asleep at the wheel leaving no survivors. Richie Powell was also killed in the second crash.
Soon after his death Blue Note released a compilation record entitled Memorial Album. Art Blakey drums on Side A and the musician whose career I've promised to chronicle in this blog, PHILLY JOE JONES, plays on Side B. Both sides were recorded in 1953 by Rudy Van Gelder. Unfortunately, the CD version is littered with unnecessary alternative takes.
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